Definition of an Uncute Tomboy
by Desaix
Summary: Akane wonders if she's become abusive...


Definition of an Uncute Tomboy A Ranma Shortfic by David A. Tatum 

Author's Notes: This fanfic is inspired by a brief bit of exposure to my girlfriends 11 year old cousin and his friends. It just sort of gave me a few ideas... 

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Akane turned off the television set, a troubled expression on her brow. The documentary she had just watched struck too close to home. Perhaps she should talk to someone about it. No, no-one else who she could trust to keep her concerns a secret would care. Well, that wasn't quite true- there was one person who would care, and he was perhaps the best person to judge of all. That decided, she stood up and started looking around for Ranma. 

She found him up in his room, reading a manga. She walked in, looked around to make sure that no-one was hiding around and spying on them, and knelt in front of him. 

"Ranma?" she began. 

"Hmm?" he grunted, not looking up from his manga. 

"Ranma, am I... that is, do you think... that is... Ranma, am I abusive?" 

"Huh?" he said. 

"I just saw a program on television about spousal abuse, and it worried me- am I abusive to you?" 

Ranma just shrugged, still reading his manga. "Nah. You're just a tomboy." 

Akane nearly hit him for that, but concern over what the documentary she'd just seen had said stopped her. "Ranma, be serious... I need to know- am I abusive?" 

"I was serious," Ranma sighed, snapping his manga shut. "You aren't abusive. You're just an underdeveloped tomboy." 

Akane got really mad at that. Why was he making fun of her at a time like this- didn't he see she was genuinely worried about this- and not just for herself, but for him as well? "Ranma!" she growled, moving in on him. 

"Look, let me explain," Ranma said, noting the anger in her eyes and backing away into a corner, making warding gestures. 

Akane's control reasserted itself. Now that she thought about it, he wasn't using the usual teasing tone of voice he had when he was insulting her. Perhaps she should give him one last chance to give her a serious answer. 

"Explain," she said sternly. "But if you just insult me like that again, I'll knock you flat, abusive behavior or not." 

"I wasn't insultin' ya, I was telling ya the truth," Ranma noted, much to Akane's chagrin. Before she could say or do anything about it, he continued, "Hey, would you rather be an underdeveloped tomboy or an abusive young lady?" 

Akane stopped at that. She certainly didn't want to be abusive, but she also didn't want to be thought of as an 'underdeveloped uncute tomboy.' "Neither!" she snapped. 

Ranma shrugged. "Then stop hitting me. Until you do, though, you're either an underdeveloped tomboy or an abusive young lady- your choice." 

Akane REALLY wanted to hit him right then, but her desire for a straight answer held her back. "Look, Ranma, are you going to tell me what you mean by that or not?" 

Ranma shrugged. "Whatever. Look, have you ever watched kids playing in the playground? Boys, I mean." 

Akane hesitated. What did that have to do with anything? "I guess I have, why?" 

"Good, then you should understand." He took a deep breath. "We're friends, aren't we? I mean, we fight a lot, but despite that we're still friends, right?" 

"Well... yeah, I guess," Akane agreed self-consciously. 

Ranma relaxed slightly. "Ever notice that boys like to roughhouse with each other, even when they're friends?" 

"Um...." Akane had no idea what he was talking about. 

"Well, they do," he confirmed. "I've always felt that our fights were sort of like a couple of kids roughhousing. I tease ya, you pound me- it's fun, sometimes. Of course, we really are too old to be doing that sort of thing, and it is a rather boyish trait, so I'm an immature jerk and you're an underdeveloped tomboy, but why should that matter? If we're still fighting like this when we're in our twenties, I'll be worried, but we still have a few years where we can still blame our fights on youth." 

Akane blinked. She'd never thought of it that way. "Do you... do you want me to stop hitting you, Ranma?" 

Ranma chuckled. "Nah, I want ya as a tomboy for now. Ya tried to stop earlier when you made that promise to Kasumi, remember, and I teased ya until you gave up, right? If ya ever stopped being one, then I'D have to grow up, too- and I'm not ready to grow up." 

Akane relaxed, a weight on her shoulders lifted. She stood up and turned to leave. 

As she started to open the door, Ranma stopped her. 

"Um, Akane?" 

"Yeah, Ranma?" 

"There's something I wanna say to ya," he said. "I may never marry an uncute tomboy like you... but I don't expect you to remain an uncute tomboy forever, okay? When I'm ready for ya to stop being an uncute tomboy, I'll stop being an immature jerk, okay?" 

Akane smiled slightly. "Okay, Ranma. I'll keep being an uncute tomboy until you're ready." 

------------------------- Hope you enjoyed it. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------- desaix@sysnet.net Sir Desaix, member # 116 of the Knights of the True Fiancee fanfics available at http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Acropolis/7872/fanfics.htm David A. Tatum's Used Anime Trading Post http://www2.sysnet.net/~desaix/shop.htm 


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